HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES STAFF ANALYSIS
BILL #: CS/CS/HB 507 Education
SPONSOR(S): Education & Employment Committee, Post-Secondary Education & Lifelong Learning
Subcommittee, Rizo and others
TIED BILLS: None IDEN./SIM. BILLS: CS/SB 1108
REFERENCE ACTION ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR or
BUDGET/POLICY CHIEF
1) Secondary Education & Career Development 16 Y, 0 N Wolff Sanchez
Subcommittee
2) Post-Secondary Education & Lifelong Learning 14 Y, 0 N, As CS Wolff Kiner
Subcommittee
3) Appropriations Committee 26 Y, 0 N Potvin Pridgeon
4) Education & Employment Committee 21 Y, 0 N, As CS Wolff Hassell
SUMMARY ANALYSIS
The bill updates the postsecondary civic literacy requirements to include both passing a civic literacy
assessment and completing a course in civic literacy. These requirements may be met in high school through
the administration of the civic literacy assessment in the required U.S. Government course and completion of
an approved civic literacy course through an articulated accelerated mechanism, such as dual enrollment.
To enable the Department of Education to protect assessments and other materials it develops, the bill
provides the DOE with the authority to hold patents, trademarks, copyrights, and service marks. The bill
provides additional protections for assessments by including more assessments under the protection of State
Board of Education (SBE) test security rules. The bill deletes obsolete language relating to prior statewide
standardized assessments and updates the assessment publication requirement in anticipation of the
implementation of new state standards.
The bill provides, subject to appropriation, for school districts to select either the SAT or the ACT and
administer the selected assessment for all grade 11 students.
The bill allows, beginning with the 2022-2023 school year, an eligible student enrolled in an English for
Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) program the opportunity to meet the grade 10 ELA assessment
requirement and receive a standard high school diploma by satisfactorily demonstrating grade-level
expectations based on formative assessment data. The bill requires the SBE to adopt rules on the pathway.
The bill requires certain athletic associations to adopt bylaws, policies, or procedures that provide schools
participating in a high school championship contest or series an opportunity to make brief opening remarks at
the event. The bill establishes requirements for the procedures for the opening remarks.
The bill requires that school district character development curriculum for grades 11 and 12 include instruction
on voting using the uniform primary and general election ballot adopted by the Florida Department of State.
The bill creates a pilot program, ending on July 1, 2024, to assess the effectiveness of innovative blended
learning where students may elect in-person or virtual instruction and learn in part through self-paced online
instruction and in part through traditional classroom instruction.
The bill has a fiscal impact related to the provision of either the SAT or the ACT to all grade 11 students. See
Fiscal Comments.
The bill provides an effective date of July 1, 2021.
This document does not reflect the intent or official position of the bill sponsor or House of Representatives.
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 FULL ANALYSIS
I. SUBSTANTIVE ANALYSIS
A. EFFECT OF PROPOSED CHANGES:
State Agency Authority to Hold Copyrights
Present Situation
Current law provides that all patents, trademarks, or copyrights owned or held by the state, or any
board, commission or agency of the state, is granted to and vested in the Department of State (DOS).1
The DOS has the authority to take all necessary actions to secure patents, trademarks, and copyrights
and to enforce such rights of the state.2 An agency other than the DOS, does not have the authority to
seek a patent, trademark, or copyright absent independent statutory authority to do so.3 Additionally,
the DOS does not have the authority to seek a patent, trademark, or copyright on behalf of a state
agency that lacks independent statutory authority to seek a patent, trademark, or copyright.4
The following government entities have independent statutory authority to seek a patent, trademark, or
copyright:
 the DOS;5
 the Department of the Lottery;6
 the Department of Citrus;7
 the Department of Transportation;8
 each water management district;9
 the Department of Law Enforcement;10
 each state university;11 and
 each Florida College System (FCS) institution board of trustees.12
Effect of Proposed Changes
The bill grants the DOE the authority to hold patents, copyrights, trademarks, and service marks.
Additionally, the DOE is authorized to take any actions necessary to enforce its rights in regard to any
such patent trademark, copyright, or service mark.
The bill requires that the DOE notify the DOS in writing when it secures a patent, trademark, copyright,
or service mark. Except for educational materials and products, any proceeds received by the DOE
from the exercise of such rights must be deposited in the DOE’s Operating Trust Fund.
Civic Literacy Requirements for K-12 and Postsecondary
1
Section 286.021, F.S.
2
Section 286.031, F.S.
3
Op. Att’y Gen. Fla. 2000-13 (2000).
4
Id.
5
Sections 286.021 and 286.031, F.S.
6
Section 24.105(10), F.S.
7
Section 601.101, F.S.
8
Section 334.049(1), F.S.
9
Section 373.608, F.S.
10
Section 943.146, F.S.
11
Section 1004.23, F.S.
12
Section 1004.726, F.S.
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 Present Situation
As part of the 24 credits required to graduate from high school, students must earn three credits in
social studies.13 One-half credit of the three credits must be earned in the U.S. Government course.14
Each student entering a FCS institution or state university must demonstrate competency in civic
literacy through two options: successful completion of a civic literacy course or achieving a passing
score on an assessment.15
The chairs of the SBE and the Board of Governors (BOG), or their respective designees, must jointly
appoint a faculty committee to:16
 develop a new course in civic literacy or revise an existing general education core course in
American History or American Government to include civic literacy; and
 establish course competencies and identify outcomes that include, at a minimum:
o an understanding of the basic principles of American democracy and how they are
applied in our republican form of government;
o an understanding of the United States Constitution,
o knowledge of the founding documents and how they have shaped the nature and
functions of our institutions of self-governance; and
o an understanding of landmark Supreme Court cases and their impact on law and
society.
The SBE must adopt in rule and the BOG must adopt in regulation at least one existing assessment
that measures competencies consistent with the required course competencies.17 The BOG has
adopted the following assessments and passing scores to meet this requirement:18
Assessment Passing Score
U.S. Citizenship Services Naturalization Test – Civics (with
60
supplemental questions)
AP Government and Politics: United States 3
AP U.S. History 4
CLEP American Government 50
While the SBE has adopted the same Advanced Placement (AP) and College-Level Examination
Program (CLEP) assessments and respective passing scores for students to meet this requirement, it
has not adopted the U.S. Citizenship Services Naturalization Test.19
Effects of Proposed Changes
The bill requires that, beginning with the 2021-2022 school year, students take the civic literacy
assessment selected by the SBE and BOG during the required high school U.S. Government course.
Students that pass the assessment are exempt from the postsecondary civic literacy assessment
requirement.
For students first entering a FCS institution or state university in 2021-2022 school year and thereafter,
the bill requires that they demonstrate civic literacy by passing a civic literacy assessment and
completing a civic literacy course. These requirements may be satisfied prior to enrollment at a
postsecondary institution through achieving a passing grade on the approved civic literacy assessment
13
Section 1003.4282(3)(d), F.S.
14
Id.
15
Section 1007.25(4), F.S.
16
Section 1007.25(4)(a)-(b), F.S.
17
Section 1007.25(4), F.S.
18
Florida Board of Governors Regulation 8.006.
19
See rule 6A-10.02413(2), F.S.
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 and completing an approved civics literacy course through an articulated accelerated mechanism, such
as dual enrollment.
The SBE shall adopt rules and the BOG shall adopt regulations that:
 provide for the development of one or more new civic literacy courses that provide students, at
a minimum, opportunities to engage synchronously in political discussion and civil debates with
multiple points of view and master the ability to synthesize information to inform civic
decisionmaking; and
 approve civic literacy assessments that address the competencies of:
o the basic principles of American democracy and how they are applied in our republican
form of government;
o an understanding of the U.S. Constitution;
o knowledge of the founding documents and how they have shaped the nature and
functions of our institutions of self-governance; and
o an understanding of landmark Supreme Court cases and their impact on law and
society.
Florida’s Statewide, Standardized Assessments
Present Situation
In 2014, the Legislature amended the statutes relating to Florida’s assessment program to set forth the
transition process from the prior statewide, standardized assessment (FCAT and FCAT 2.0) to the
Florida Standards Assessment (FSA), including new English Language Arts (ELA) and mathematics
assessments. 20 The SBE must adopt test security rules for the statewide, standardized assessment
program.21 Violation of the test security rules for assessments administered pursuant to the student
assessment program for public schools is a misdemeanor in the first degree.22
Florida’s statewide, standardized assessments measure the extent to which students have mastered
the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards (NGSSS).23 The requirements for students in Florida
are as follows:24
ELA Mathematics Science Social Studies
Grades 3-10: annual  Grades 3-8: annual  Grades 5 and 8:  Middle school: Civics
participation in the ELA participation in the Statewide Science EOC assessment
FSA mathematics FSA Assessments
 High school: Algebra I  High school: Biology I  High school: U.S.
and Geometry EOC EOC assessment History EOC
assessments assessment
The Commissioner of Education (commissioner) assists and supports districts in measuring student
performance on the state standards by maintaining a statewide item bank, facilitating the sharing of
developed tests or test items among school districts, and providing technical assistance in best
assessment practices.25 The commissioner may discontinue the item bank if he or she determines that
district participation is insufficient for its sustainability. 26
To promote transparency in the statewide, standardized assessment program, the DOE must solicit
cost proposals for publication of the state assessments on its website in any procurement for the
20
Chapter 2014-39, L.O.F.
21
Section 1008.24, F.S.
22
Id.
23
See s. 1008.22(3), F.S.
24
See s. 1008.22(3)(a) and (b), F.S.
25
Section 1008.22(6)(b), F.S.
26
Id.
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 statewide, standardized ELA assessment in grades 3 through 10 and the statewide, standardized
mathematics assessment in grades 3 through 8. Each statewide, standardized assessment27 and EOC
assessment,28 excluding assessment retakes, must be published at least once on a triennial basis
pursuant to a schedule determined by the commissioner.29 The first set of assessments must be
published no later than June 30, 2021, and must include, at a minimum, the statewide, standardized
grade 3 ELA and mathematics assessments, the statewide, standardized grade 10 ELA assessment,
and the Algebra I EOC assessment.30
In 2020, the SBE approved the NGSSS Benchmarks in Excellent Student Thinking Standards (BEST
Standards).31 The DOE will be implementing the new standards through the 2022-2023 school year,
when the statewide, standardized assessment will be aligned to the new standards.32
Effect of Proposed Changes
Beginning in the 2021-2022 school year and subject to appropriation, the bill requires each school
district to select either the SAT or the ACT for districtwide administration to each public school student
in grade 11, including students attending public high schools, alternative schools, and Department of
Juvenile Justice education programs.
Throughout the statutes that implement Florida’s statewide, standardized assessments, the bill
removes obsolete language related to the transition from the FCAT 2.0 to the FSA assessments.
Where necessary, the bill updates those statutes to conform to the current statewide, standardized
assessment process described above. The bill retains the requirement that the statewide, standardized
ELA and mathematics assessments for grades 3 through 6 must be provided in a paper-based format.
The bill requires that a student’s results on the statewide, standardized science and social studies
assessments be included in the mandatory report of assessment results provided to students, parents,
and teachers. The mandatory report was previously only required to include the student’s results on the
statewide, standardized ELA and mathematics assessments.
The bill removes the requirement that the commissioner maintain a statewide item bank, facilitate the
sharing of developed tests or test items among school districts, and provide technical assistance in
best assessment practices.
The bill requires that publication of the new assessments aligned to the NGSSS BEST Standards,
including the statewide, standardized ELA, mathematics, science, and social studies assessments, be
initially published by June 30, 2024.
The bill removes the requirement that the DOE include data on students that enroll in adult education
following 8th grade rather than other secondary education from the required annual report on
assessments.
The bills adds additional assessments that are to be protected by the SBE test security rules to include:
 the statewide kindergarten screening;
 assessments administered by the Department of Juvenile Justice education programs;
 English language assessments for limited English proficient students;
 the postsecondary civic literacy assessment;
 the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test and PreACT;
27
See s. 1008.22(3)(a), F.S.
28
See s. 1008.22(3)(b)1., F.S.
29
Section 1008.22(8)(a), F.S.
30
Section 1008.22(8)(b), F.S.
31
Florida Department of Education, Adoptions and Implementation of Benchmarks for Excellent Student Thinking (B.E.S.T.)
Standards Memorandum, available at https://info.fldoe.org/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-8838/dps-2020-26.pdf.
32
Id.
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  assessments administered to